a cup of tea and a field of rye

When you start down a difficult road to do something worth doing, you need family, friends, and people who believe enough to support you in a tangible way. If the dream is universal enough, you can find those people. And sometimes they find you.

Last Sunday Kimi and Kareno threw open the gate to the farm to people who signed up for their Community Supported Agriculture Box Program and their Sweet Digz Bucks Program. Think of those as seed money. Literally. Earlier in the year customers bought Sweet Digz Bucks at a discounted price to be used throughout this season to purchase produce from farm stands located at the Steveston Farmer’s Market and Nirvana Organics Market or at the farm itself. The CSA Box program allowed people to pre-pay for 16 weeks of produce delivered in a box to their home also at a discounted price. The Sweet Digz Farm website explains the idea in this way:

CSA stands for Community Supported Agriculture and is a model of direct farm marketing that has its roots in Japan and has become popular worldwide. The CSA model was created as a way to support the local farmer and create connections between local farms and the people who buy their food. CSA members “buy a share” in the farm, and pay a lump sum in the Spring when the farmer’s income is low. This money goes towards seeds, soil amendments, irrigation, and other expenses. The farmer spends less of their precious time on marketing, and more on growing amazing food! CSA members receive a weekly share of the farm’s harvest, enjoying the best and freshest veggies from the farm. And they know they’re supporting local organic agriculture.

Supporters of the farm were treated to aromatic, flavourful teas like mint and rosemary, served in elegant bone china cups and saucers, and to homemade rhubarb pop in gallon jugs. A tasty arugula pesto and hearty humus were complimented with delicious local strawberries and a few baked goodies brought by friends. Folks stood under the tents and sat on hay bales in the sun and listened to Kareno and Kimi talk about some of the early challenges and hard won successes. This was followed by a tour of the farm where people had an opportunity see exactly where and how their food is grown.

The tour ended with a walk through a field of rye cover at the bottom of the property. This is land that still needs to be worked before it can be productive. There was something beautifully reassuring about the future of this small farm when you stand in a golden field of promise with people who took a leap of faith and to know it is all good.